PARADICE PALASE is pleased to present Apparitions, the 3rd Annual Members Exhibition for the platform. The exhibition includes paintings, sculptures, mixed media works, video, photography, prints, glass and works on paper by 27 artists from our members network with works ranging in size from 3”x4” to 13”x19”.
When considering this year’s selections, spiritual forms, ghostly bodies, and abstract mirages began to emerge, quite fitting for such a mysterious time of year. October is not only the host month to our beloved holiday Halloween, but it also represents a stark transitional period. A sense of nostalgia, longing, and loss oftentimes mark this season but it is also a collective feeling as we trudge towards the end of another year in a global pandemic.
During this time many of us have distanced ourselves from loved ones while some of us have been practically fused together due to chronic close proximity. The sensation of either too much distance or too much closeness creates a sort of “out body experience” for our daily existence. This comes paired with the reliance upon witchcraft within our digital devices to keep us connected yet paradoxically also separated. Artists around the world, whether intentionally or not, have been internalizing this continued “temporary” understanding of reality and are responding within their work.
For some, the lack of physical presence is remedied through material objects and depictions of likenesses. In Apparitions, several artists utilize the sentimental value of textiles to access the deeply personal or to make reference to cherished people and places (Jesssica Soininen-Eddis, Tricia Townes, Mike McGuire, and Lauren Packard). In contrast, a feeling of tender otherness is portrayed through the use of taxidermy (Kelly Boehmer), mutations of the organic (Seren Morey), or recycled junk mail that was personally addressed (Jaynie Crimmins). These particular artists take us beyond the sentimental and to a place of absurd melancholy with works like Boehmer’s “Butterflies in My Stomach”, a vibrant pink child-like plush wall sculpture filled with insect wings.
As we navigate this murky present we find ourselves in, we’ve used devices like cameras to capture hard evidence of our existence. Yet literal ghostly bodies emerge from the photography of Julie K. Gray and duo Isla P. Gordon and Ashley Kaye. Photography itself takes us into a complex place where past and present overlap, where visible truth is debatable. Phantom-like figures appear in place of physical forms in a print of digital renderings by Laurie Berenhaus, a painting depicting domestic labor by Angela Miskis, and a painting of afterimages in a Filipino brown out by Maria Stabio. Abstract and figurative drawings, paintings, and works on paper are created by marks guided by invisible hands, and bring us a sense of the ethereal through careful
study of color, light and shadow (Gary Cruz, Lucha Rodriguez, Jacki Davis, Kylin O’Brien, Sunny Buick, David McDonough).
Sculptural works in the exhibition bring us toward reality remarkably stopped in its tracks: seemingly organic material and objects defy decomposition (Grayson Cassels & Carrie R) and movement of water is frozen in time (Anais Ôst & Alison Kudlow). This leads us to the unknown territory that quietly guides our world unseen - sacred geometry interlinked to something beyond ourselves (Valeria Haedo & Michael Hambouz), and mystic rituals and characters moving us along undetected (joshuagabriel, Judi Keeshan, and Deborah Yasinsky).
As a group, the artists in Apparitions are navigating a deeply transitional and unclear moment in time as we struggle to emerge from unprecedented crises. Their work collectively speaks on an overcast future shadowed by doubt, dread, and exhaustion. Yet within their works there is a sense of something there that is not yet seen - that there is trust whatever it is we need right now will appear. That at least we are here and we are present now.
“We are but a moment’s sunlight fading in the grass.” - Youngbloods
Artists:
Laurie Berenhaus, Kelly Boehmer, Sunny Buick, Grayson Cassels, Jaynie Crimmins, Gary Cruz, Jacki Davis, Isla P. Gordon & Ashley Kaye, Julie Gray, Valeria Haedo, Micahel Hambouz, Judi Keeshan, Alison Kudlow, David McDonough, Mike McGuire, Angela Miskis, Seren Morey, Kylin O’Brien, Anais Öst, lauren packard, carrie R, Lucha Rodriguez, Jessica Soininen-Eddis, Maria Stabio, joshuagabriel, Tricia Townes, and Deborah Yasinsky.
Apparitions is on view at the gallery October 4 - 27, 2021. The gallery is located at 1260 Broadway, Brooklyn, NY. Hours are Saturdays 1-5pm and by appointment. The reception will be Saturday October 23, 12-6pm alongside our Oasis Studios Open Studios event. For more information and to RSVP please visit www/.paradicepalase.com/. To browse all available works, visit our Artfare page.